Bircham Newton

Bircham Newton
Village
All Saints, Bircham Newton
Bircham Newton Location within Norfolk
OS grid reference	TF768338
Civil parish	Bircham
District	King's Lynn and West Norfolk
Shire county	Norfolk
Region	East
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	King's Lynn
Postcode district	PE31
Dialling code	01485
UK Parliament	North West Norfolk
List of places UK England Norfolk 52°52′21″N0°37′32″E / 52.87262°N 0.62547°E / 52.87262; 0.62547

Bircham Newton is a village in the civil parish of Bircham, in the King's Lynn and West Norfolk district, in the county of Norfolk, England.

Bircham Newton is located 0.7 miles (1.1 km) north of Great Bircham, 13 miles (21 km) north-east of King's Lynn and 33 miles (53 km) north-west of Norwich.

History

Bircham Newton's name is of Anglo-Saxon origin and derives from the Old English for the new settlement close to Bircham. The origin of 'Bircham' is unknown. ^[1]

Bircham Newton is listed in the Domesday Book as a settlement of 19 households in the hundred of Docking. In 1086, Bircham Newton was part of the estates of Ralph de Beaufour. ^[2]

Within Bircham Newton is 'The Old House' which is largely Seventeenth Century in origin with further Eighteenth and Twentieth Century additions. The building is Grade II listed. ^[3]

Geography

Bircham Newton is located along the B1153, which runs between Narborough and Brancaster.

According to the 1931 census, Bircham Newton had a population of 487. ^[4] This was the last time separate population statistics were collected for Bircham Newton. On 1 April 1935, Bircham Newton was merged with Great Bircham and Bircham Tofts to form the civil parish of Bircham. ^[5]

All Saints' Church

Bircham Newton's parish church is dedicated to All Saints and originates from the Twelfth Century. ^[6] The church was gently restored in 1858 under the leadership of the churchwarden, P. Jarrett. Inside the church there are a set of royal arms from the reign of King George III and a memorial to John James Stephens Ward (an illegitimate grandson of Admiral Horatio Nelson). ^[7]

RAF Bircham Newton

Main article: RAF Bircham Newton

In 1916, land close to Bircham Newton was developed into a base for the Royal Flying Corps during the First World War. The base was in further use during the inter-war period and saw further service during the Second World War as a base for RAF Coastal Command. From 1966 ^[8] until 2020 the airfield was the home of the Construction Industry Training Board. In February 2020, the CITB announced it had sold its training provision to West Suffolk College, based in Bury St Edmunds, aiming to continue construction industry training provision at the site. ^[9]

Governance

Bircham Newton is part of the electoral ward of Bircham with Ruddhams for local elections and is part of the district of King's Lynn and West Norfolk.

The village's national constituency is North West Norfolk which has been represented by the Conservative's James Wild since 2010.

War Memorial

Bircham Newton's war memorial is shared with Great Bircham and takes the form of a stone cross atop a marble plaque. The following men from Bircham Newton are listed on the war memorial as having fallen during the First World War: ^[10]

Rank	Name	Unit	Date of Death	Other Commemoration / Burial
Private	Jacob Osbourne	2/4th Battalion, Duke of Wellington's Regiment	24th March 1918	War Cemetery,Bienvillers-au-Bois

References

1. "Key to English Place-names". kepn.nottingham.ac.uk. Retrieved 6 November 2024.
2. "Bircham [Newton] | Domesday Book". opendomesday.org. Retrieved 6 November 2024.
3. "THE OLD HOUSE, Bircham - 1304770 | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk. Retrieved 6 November 2024.
4. "Population statistics Bircham Newton AP/CP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time . Retrieved 23 September 2022.
5. "Relationships and changes Bircham Newton AP/CP through time". A Vision of Britain through Time. Retrieved 23 September 2022.
6. "CHURCH OF ALL SAINTS, Bircham - 1077805 | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk. Retrieved 6 November 2024.
7. "Norfolk Churches". norfolkchurches.co.uk. Retrieved 6 November 2024.
8. "What is The Construction Industry Training Board?". Essential Site Skills. Retrieved 2 March 2020.
9. Lorenzato-Lloyd, Alice (24 February 2020). "CITB strikes deal to sell Bircham Newton home". Building. Retrieved 24 February 2020.
10. "Roll of Honour - Norfolk - Great Bircham". roll-of-honour.com. Retrieved 6 November 2024.

External links

• Map sources for Bircham Newton.
• Information from Genuki Norfolk on Bircham Newton.
• The Hauntings of Bircham Newton
• CITB Approved Training Provider